ALEXA Mini

Compact, lightweight, and self-contained - ARRI ALEXA Mini is the small and versatile allrounder in the ARRI camera family.

The symmetrical design permits filming in any orientation, including upside-down and in portrait mode, while multiple accessory points enable highly creative mounting solutions. In addition, ALEXA Mini comes with a series of interchangeable lens mount, allowing the use of B4 video, EF mount stills lenses, or with the even ARRI Signature Primes with the LPL mount for ALEXA Mini.

Small and Excellent

An ALEXA Mini can be operated in number of ways: by wireless remote control, as an A-camera with the ARRI MVF-1 multi viewfinder attached, or with an on-board monitor and controlled via the user button interface on the camera body.

Designed with new-generation brushless gimbals, multicopters and other specialized rigs in mind, ALEXA Mini is light enough to be comfortably held at arm’s length in a hand rig, while its compact size also makes it ideal for tight shooting conditions, as well as underwater, aerial, car, action, and 3D shoots.

With an ALEXA Mini you can literally shoot everywhere with the best image quality.

ALEXA Mini Studio Set

The compact and lightweight ALEXA Mini is a highly versatile tool on set. In some productions it is used as a second or third camera, while in others it is the main camera throughout a shoot. As a result, it is frequently moved from one configuration to another. Any time savings that can be made during these transitions will have a big impact on the daily shooting schedule.

Therefore, ARRI has developed a studio set for ALEXA Mini. It's core is the ARRI Compact Bridge Plate CBP-1, a base plate with integrated sliding bridge plate and shoulder pad. This allows for rapid, tool-less transitions between configurations - for example from TRINITY, MAXIMA, or Steadicam stabilizers to tripod heads or an operator’s shoulder.

The Rear Accessory Bracket RAB-1 offers flexible attachment options for the Power Splitting Box Mk II, a power distribution unit available in Gold Mount and V-Mount versions, while the Side Accessory Bracket SAB-1 provides a simple interface for mounting accessories towards the rear of the camera. Many previously released ARRI camera accessories for the ALEXA Mini are fully compatible with the studio set.

ALEXA Mini Quotes

Ultimately, for me owning an ALEXA Mini wasn't a money-making decision but it was about investing in myself and my career. It was definitely a big investment for me but it is worth it as it gives me access to, in my opinion, the best image out there.

DP Michael Latham

As soon as I talked to the director about the look and the technical side of the TVC, it was clear that we had to use the ALEXA Mini. We had to switch through multiple setups along the shooting days from handheld to quick and subtle tracks on the Movi PRO and Movi XL on the tracking vehicle. Since the Mini is so versatile and easy to rig it was the perfect fit allowing us to shoot more and wait less.

DP Žiga Zupačič

We used ALEXA Mini for aerial shots and gimbal work and the rest of film was shot on ALEXA SXT. Since the ALEXA cameras have the same type of sensor and we used the same lenses, the style was uniform, even though we used two different camera types. We shot the film in the remote city of Haikou which meant it would have been very hard to get another camera body if anything went wrong. The reliability of ARRI cameras was outstanding and indeed a relief.

DP Max Wang

The ALEXA Mini was very nice in regard to size and weight, very comfortable. The feeling that we wanted to get for the film was documentary style, kind of run-and-gun, and for that we needed a very light camera. The size of the ALEXA Mini gave us the freedom to move around easier. With handheld you can move around with the actor and let him be free. It changes the entire attitude of filmmaking, and it gives the actors more of a natural feeling of being in the scene.

DP César Charlone ABC

The size of ALEXA Mini is a big bonus, it allowed us to shoot lighter and faster. We had a lot of shoulder-mounted shots and there were caves that only allowed two people to squat in; this would have been very hard for a big camera. We used two ALEXA Minis also for the scenes where we were climbing mountains and also for the multicam shots of the action scenes. The camera really shined when we shot the exterior scenes. There were a lot of narrow places, including the shots in the forest, and ALEXA Mini was perfect for the job. I also think the overall stability of ARRI is superb, there’s no problem using an ALEXA mini as an A cam.

No, it does not. Most digital cameras have the greatest exposure latitude at a specific EI setting (often called the 'sweet spot'). Choosing an EI setting that is higher or lower than the optimal setting will result in a sometimes surprisingly large loss of exposure latitude. ALEXA Mini is unique in that it’s exposure latitude of over 14 stops (as measured with the ARRI Dynamic Range Test Chart (DRTC)) stays constant from EI 160 to EI 3200.

In jam-sync mode the camera samples the timecode value and simultaneously tunes its internal timecode clock to match the clock of the timecode source, which prevents potential drift between camera timecode and timecode source. During this procedure, the timecode display on the home screen, on the timecode menu screen as well as on the status overlays is flashing. Jamming has finished when the timecode display stops flashing, then the timecode source can be disconnected. The camera now continues counting based on its own high-precision crystal clock. This mode ensures stable timecode with a drift of less than one frame over eight hours, after which the camera has to be re-jammed.